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You know you’re from Baguio if…

13 September 2007 Posted by Erwin Oliva View Comments
Erwin Oliva

It seems this “you know you’re from (add name of place here) if…” is spreading like wildfire on the Internet. Now, they have a version of Baguio, which I found, er, interesting. I was tempted to post another list like, “You know you’re getting old if…” but this list makes for a better read. Enjoy and laugh your heart out. You need it, I’m sure!

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1. you bought your school supplies from CID Educational Supplies

2. you bought your fabrics from Tiong San Bazaar (before there was the Old, the New and Harrison aside from Valiram’s, Bheromull’s, Bombay and Fil-Indian)

3. you bought your imported ingredients from D & S Fine Foods

4. you went to Tea House for all its delicacies like the pancit,the cakes, etc.

5. you went to see movies at Pines or Session Theatre either in the orchestra, lodge or the balcony section (without airconditioning)

6. you went to Gold Mine Disco at Hyatt Terraces for night outs(sometime later Spirits became the “in” place)

7. you thought that the best Chinese restaurants in town were Rosebowl and Star café (Mt. Peak where Abanao Mall now is was also good)

8. the only grocery store you remember is Sunshine Grocery (the small one)

9. you had your photos developed at Pines or Mountain Studio

10. you remember where the politicians met for coffee – Dainty!

11. you know where to buy the best Sans Rival – Sizzling Plate

12. you bought chiffon birthday cakes at Tesoro’s

13. you know what cooking oil looked like if not in bottles

14. you remember there was a real tree in the rotunda fronting what is now SM Baguio and the post office (which was cut down to give way to the fountain of tiyanaks and eventually to the concrete pine tree)

15. you remember that there was a Session Cafe

16. you ate toasted siopao from Handaan when it was the craze.

17. you enjoyed eating pizza at the old Shakey’s located at the basement of Skyworld (now the haven of ukay ukay)

18. you had your milk supplied in bottles from the Baguio dairy farm

19. you had eaten good food at the slaughterhouse (like papaitan)

20. you speak straight and clear english without an annoying colegiala accent

21. you listened to DWHB when it was not yet corny (or in fact it was the only cool FM station playing the latest hits)

22. you ate lunch at Benedict’s

23. you spent your free time hanging out at FRB

24. you ate the best fried chicken at Mother’s

25. you roller skated at John Hay

26. you remember that Sharon Cuneta’s half brother had a restaurant in Maharlika

27. you bought imported goods either at John Hay commissary (for those who had the privilege), the PX goods stores in the market or at GP arcade (for the rubber shoes)

28. you studied music at Musar or at the Girls’ High music department

29. you remember that there was no Berlin Wall between Center and Lab

30. you were once hospitalized in Notre Dame, the hospital run by sisters

31. your mom studied at St. Theresa’s boarding school

32. you had friends studying in Marishan or UP High School

33. you felt sad at Pines Hotel burning down (it was always featured in the movies of the 70s and 80s)

33.1. you rode the jeep at the paradahan where the Baguio Center Mall is now located

34. if you are Chinese, you were enrolled in Chinese lessons at Patriotic

35. you could hear the voice of Baby de Guzman, a local announcer, emanating from your lolo’s AM radio in the early hours of the morning

36. you used oil lamps back home

37. you are/were not awestruck at the sight of an artista or celebrity

38. you did not wear the Baguio City bonnet

39. your idea of a good weekend was a picnic at Burnham or Camp John Hay or swimming at Asin or Klondike hot springs

40. you ate imported ice cream on cones with square ends in John Hay or the best American food in Halfway House or 19th tee

41. you somehow attended a classy party in the Main Club when it was still just one wing (which eventually became two wings and which were demolished to give way to the Manor)

42. you played at the bowling lanes lining Mabini St. * Olympia and Aurora (Mile Hi was in John Hay)

43. you regarded Hilltop hotel as a monstrosity looming over the market (a predecessor of SM Baguio!)

44. you traveled to La Trinidad without encountering traffic

45. you managed to sample fried ice cream at Greenwich (back when it was not yet owned by Jollibee)

46. you at one time or another wore “civilian” clothes in school instead of the usual blue and white uniforms because the laundry didn’t dry up in time during the rainy season.

47. you visited the Orchidarium which was located where the skating rink is now which used to be the original site of the original skating rink(?)

48. if you studied in Girls High, you remember the Kundirana (AnimoLa Salle!) visiting every year

49. you paraded on the street because it was Baguio Day (not because of Panagbenga)

50. you somehow graduated from playing with spiders to pigeons to aquarium fish to fighting cocks

51. you could actually leave home and be at the plaza in 5 minutes(which is totally impossible now)

52. you had a sayotehan in the backyard

53. you knew the lion head in Kennon had a different color (what is it now anyway? From black to red to yellow to ???)

54. you ate the raisin bread from Country Club

55. you remember the PMA graduating class always giving a dress parade

56. you recalled that the Baguio Botanical Garden was formerly known as Imelda park (and you knew of the urban legend that it was an old zoo and that a giant snake escaped from its cage)

57. you tried ghost hunting (or as they now call it spirit questing)at Diplomat Hotel

58. you crossed the streets and not the overpasses

59. you knew that Hangar was where you could buy the cheapest veggies 60. you bought medicine from the Parungao pharmacy (the only competitor of Mercury)

61. you ate merienda and bought hopia from Master Hopia! & you could buy the yellow cinnamon roll (in the form a round cake) anywhere

62. You ate cheap long johns stuffed with cheese

63. you had shoes bought and fixed along General Luna road (if you didn’t buy from Greggs in Session road)

64. you marveled at the fact that you could see your breathe out in the cold! (which meant it was still that cold then!)

65. you wore those colorful plastic boots (in red, blue or black) to school when the rains got so heavy

66. you could recall that there were indeed mines in Mines View Park (and not the roofs of houses)

67. you rode on cabs that were 4 door sedans and not FXs.

68. you knew what Chaparral signified

69. you wore socks to bed to keep warm70. you had a 4 digit telephone number courtesy of PILTEL

71. you were able to venture into the Crystal Caves when it was still pristine

72. you knew Boys’ High as being only for boys and Girls’ High and Holy Fam as two separate high schools for females (with different uniforms)

73. you can enter the SLU campus without having to show any ID (it was that open)

74. you read the Midland Courier or the Gold Ore due to your lola’s proddings

75. you saw elderly men wearing their best suits and hats while walking along Session Road

76. you had leather shoes shined by a shoeshine boy

77. you witnessed a dog show at the soccer field in Burnham

78. you knew of the Golden Buddha story

79. you once enjoyed camping as a boy or girl scout at the site near the John Hay fire station (where a convention center is now located)

80. you had a school-sponsored recollection in one of the many convents and seminaries in the city

81. you saw the Marcos mansions while they were still not ruins

82. you passed by Kennon while there were still the Twin Peaks (due to numerous landslides the other peak has disappeared) and Bridal Veil Falls

83. you once planted a pine tree sapling for the regreening movement effort

84. you had a dried up garland of everlasting around the Infant Jesus statue at home

85. you ate the best bananas from Sablan (not anymore!)

86. you somehow ate at any of these Cating owned restos * Solibao, Ganza, Cañao and Tom Sawyer’s

87. you were able to travel to Manila using the old non-airconditioned buses (there was even a train from Manila to Damortis)

88. you had FEN courtesy of those special antennas and therefore enjoyed to the max all the hit Western TV shows (that’s why you were so angry when the bases were pulled out!)

89. you ate at Café by the Ruins and O-Mai-Khan

90. you rode on the Philippine Rabbit back when its terminal was at Magsaysay avenue

91. you traveled to Manila using Dangwa or to Ilocos using BAL or Times

92. you drank Benguet coffee

93. your family may have owned a Volkswagen beetle (Baguio has one of the highest densities of this car since the Tabandas of La Trinidad had a dealership)

94. you always were afraid of that pine tree in the middle of the road on the way to the Loakan airport (it has been cut down)

95. you attempted to explore Mt. Sto. Tomas and remembered to remove your watch (they said it was going to be damaged if you didn’t)

96. you used your fireplace during Christmases of yore

97. you knew Europa as the one and only condominium

98. you bought your vinyl albums and eventually cassette tapes and the posters at Plakabar

99. you distinctly remember that there was a small public library near the Athletic Bowl and the tennis courts in Burnham

100. you enjoyed the bump car rides at the basement of Maharlika (back when it was not yet a food court)

101.you never went malling and instead enjoyed the numerous parks and outdoor amusements that Baguio

 

  • ram
    Park and shot sa may mansion House or sa Marcos HIghway!!! yosi sa lobby ng UP Baguio- inuman tuwing pasiklaban, mag yosi sa 20s tuwing org meetings, tumambnay sa dating Cathedral na ngayon ay mukhang amusement park.
  • ike fadriquela
    Parang wala akong nakitang "everybody stops at 6pm for the angelus", ginagawa pa ba yun hanggang ngayon? Baka nasa ibang comment na hindi ko nabasa lahat.
  • katoy
    ... If you were once hooked to the combiantion of fried rice and buttered chicken from Cathy's at Diego Silang Street (Near the paradahan ng PNR/ Hillside Jeeps).
  • theo niño
    meron pa pala...uso diyay radyo idi...i miss that... breaker..breaker...any break.....10 codes and Q codes.... 584, 533, 503 freq sy sy...patch up patch up.....lalo na pag SUMVAK...mga iba ibang group... 'm a member of BECG pala... inactive na nga lang... I miss tambayan sa azotea... mga eye ball ng mga tropa....first batch ng merging ng Girls' High and Holy Fam..... I use to tuck in the uniform na nakasabit sa shoulders then using the ribbon ng Holy FAM.... kaboom ayun... lahat ng friends ko taga GH.... I miss you guys.....
  • theo niño
    Certified taga baguio.... it was just fun reading this.....It makes you go back to the old times... dapat adda ah ti oddoks..... ken mangga na may nakababad sa suka ken karamay na maasim at yung isa pang maasim na rattan..... sarap....
  • tim
    If you know the best MAMI in Baguio mi hangover ka ......idiay carantes
  • CICS
    luv it... ^_^
  • macoi
    nice compilation...nothing beats BAGUIO!

    # 93 is a fact! im a proud beetle owner and there is really a lot of 'em still prowling the city streets...

    additional: you're from baguio if you bought your school shoes from Gregg's...
  • chien
    So awesome.....i proved it my self that there is NO PLACE LIKE BAGUIO.

    ...WHY not add Jack's rice of Jack's restaurant...eventually a lot of local restaurants followed that idea...rice topped with sunnyside egg, plus chopsuey, fried chicken and lechon liempo...

    >>>and what about the famous PINIKPIKAN? and the KINUDAY-smoked or sun dried pork (for Ibalois), Etag-preserved/salted pork (For Kankanaeys)
  • Rey ( iking ) Buendia
    Wow gusto ko na uli umuwi! right on! Or for those that studied in the public elementary schools ( Rizal Elementary ), waxing the schools wooden floors/boards with MARAPAIT leaves leaving it to dry and scrub it with bunot/lampaso ( coconut husks).What a smell! Back then when it was still plentiful.Beautiful yellow flowers undulating in the winds especially passing through Naguillian,Marcos, and Kennon roads.
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